Rescue Ship Operation

The Simon Wiesenthal Center, as part of its ongoing research, is attempting to identify individuals who either worked with or were saved through the efforts of William Perl. Dr. (Willie) Perl was one of the chief organizers of the illegal rescue ship operation "Die Aktion" that began in Vienna and eventually spread throughout Europe between 1937 and 1944.

From Vienna, Prague, Bratislava, Bucharest, Budapest, Danzig, Berlin, Warsaw and other European cities, escaping Jews traveled on trains and riverboats to several ports on the Danube River where they transferred to ocean-going steamers that eventually broke the British blockade of Palestine. Among the many ships with which William Perl was involved were: Gepo (12/38), Katina (1/39), Astir (3/39), Liesel (5/39), Parita (7/39), Noemi Julia (8/39) and Sakarya (2/40). Transfer points for these ships were in Bulgaria and Romania.